IIIF Color HighRes
National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
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| IIIF Color HighRes |
| Across Asia : vol.1 |
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Citation Information
RECORDS OF THE JOURNEY
A cargo of arms on 50o camels makes a journey of 3 months with about a dozen unarmed officers and armourers as the only escort. Not a single mounted rifle could be seen! — There cannot be many countries, in which this could happen.
Owing to our being delayed by this interesting sight, we did not reach Kucheng until after dark. Izmail, who had been sent on ahead, had got me a large and splendid room through the aksakal in the house of an old Andijanlik. He had twice been Hadji. Endless handshaking, dastarkhan with sweets, incomparable Turfan grapes, bread, tea and pälaw, all this is almost as trying to the patience as conversing through an incompetent interpreter.
The Kucheng district contains the following villages in a direction outwards from the town:
in the E: Syshi li pu, a station of 5 houses (3 Sart) on the high road; Hsiti 5o (Chinese); Tung ti 46 (Chinese); Khau-taidza 26 (Chinese); Tchitai 47, bazaar (Chinese and Dungan); Tung tchyn-za 16 (6 Sart); Mutikhö 105 (Chinese and a few Dungan and Sart). S of Mutikhö lie Khei Santu 7o houses, bazaar with 25 shops, an impanj for lianza (?); Pikhigu 20 (Dungan); Shang pu and Hsia pu together 37 (Chinese). — N of Mutikhö Nanpei tcha 75 (Chinese);
in the S: Bäj-jen-khö 73; Ma-tchang 3o; Pa-tia-khu 8 (rented by Chinese); Lung yang miao (rented by Chinese) and Pan-tie-kou 102 (42 Dungan, to Sart, the rest Chinese). The first four villages belong to Manchurians, who let their land;
in the W: Si guan close to the town wall 200 houses and 31 shops (5o Dungan houses, 7 Sart); Hsiao tun 3o houses and 3 inns (Chinese); Liu-shu-khö 84 (Chinese); Hsia-sän-tun 94 (Chinese); Shang-hu-ti 3o; Ta pan khö 103 (Chinese); Ta tyenza 66 (Chinese);
in the N: Sha-shenza 25 houses (Chinese); Päi-ta-tchou 105 (Chinese) and Shang-tou-tun 97 (Chinese).
The word village is really a misleading term, for with the exception of bazaars there are no groups of houses. Each house stands separately and the next one is usually no nearer than 1/3 to 2/3 of a mile off.
Wheat, peas, millet, oil plants, tchoumi (a white mustard-like flower usually grown in colder climates) and some opium are grown. There is no gaolyan. The land appears to yield an 8—to fold crop on an average. There is a good supply of water and there seem to be comparatively good opportunities of breaking new ground. Except in the N, where there is a supply of spring water, the water comes from the mountains and the quantity depends on the quantity of snow in the winter. In some places it happens that cultivation is curtailed in view of the small quantity of snow during the previous winter. The majority of the population are immigrants from the interior of China. During recent years no increase in the number of immigrants has been noticeable and no new villages have been built. 14,900 tan of grain are levied in taxes annually in the district.
The town itself contains 3004 houses with a population of about 15,00o, composed of Chinese, Dungans and Sarts. There are 642 shops, of which 6 do a large wholesale trade and 25 (to belonging to Russian subjects) a slightly smaller, but nevertheless considerable business. Russian trade does not fall short of 50,00o roubles per shop.
335 (
September 13. Kucheng.
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